US tech stocks bounced on Friday, November 6, 2026, a day after a sell-off in artificial intelligence (AI) and chip shares pushed the Nasdaq Composite into correction. A stronger-than-expected October jobs report steadied nerves about the economy, but it also raised bets on a Federal Reserve rate hike next month.
By mid-morning in New York, the Nasdaq was up about 1.9% and the S&P 500 about 1%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average swung between small gains and losses, according to CBS News and Yahoo Finance. These are intraday figures, not closing levels.
Thursday's sell-off: what happened
On Thursday, November 5, the Nasdaq fell 5.5% to 24,315. That left it more than 10% below its October 29 record close, the usual definition of a correction. The S&P 500 lost 4.4% to 7,353.73, and the Dow fell more than 1,800 points, or 3.4%, to 51,523.06. For all three indexes it was the worst day since April 2025.
Chipmakers took the heaviest losses. Nvidia fell about 9%, Advanced Micro Devices about 17% and Micron about 17%. The PHLX Semiconductor Index dropped about 12%. CNBC reported that the "Magnificent Seven" megacaps lost more than $1 trillion in combined market value in a single session.
Why the midterms hit AI stocks
The trigger was politics, not earnings. Democrats won both chambers of Congress in the November 3 midterms, and investors began pricing in tighter rules on the data centers behind the AI build-out.
In Texas, Governor-elect Gina Hinojosa said, as quoted by CNBC, that "we need to stop what we are doing with data centers until we have those protections." Voters in a number of local ballot measures also backed restrictions or bans on new data centers.
President Trump said he fully supports the AI build-out, calling the technology "GOLD" in a Truth Social post.
Stuart Clark of investment manager Quilter told CNBC the episode showed concentration risk. When a small group of tech and chip stocks dominates the index, weakness in those names drives big moves in the whole market.
Friday's rebound: chips lead
Bargain hunters returned to the worst-hit names on Friday morning, according to Yahoo Finance and CBS News:
- Nvidia rose about 6% to 6.6% in early trade.
- AMD gained about 8%.
- Micron rose between about 7% and 10%.
- Intel climbed nearly 6% after a 10% slide on Thursday.
- The PHLX Semiconductor Index was up about 4%.
The Cboe Volatility Index (VIX), Wall Street's "fear gauge", fell about 15% to around 24.
Update, Friday close: the rebound held into the close. The Nasdaq 100 ended Friday, November 6, up 1.1% and the S&P 500 up 0.3%, NBC News reported. On Thursday the Nasdaq 100 had fallen 6.3%, its worst day since the Covid-19 pandemic.
October jobs report beats forecasts
The Bureau of Labor Statistics said nonfarm payrolls rose by 165,000 in October, against a Dow Jones consensus of 59,000. That was more than three times the 48,000 average monthly gain of the prior 12 months. The unemployment rate was 4.1%, below the 4.2% forecast.
- Leading sectors: professional and business services (+70,000), health care (+42,000), transportation and warehousing (+25,000) and manufacturing (+19,000).
- Wages: average hourly earnings rose 0.4% on the month to $38.00, and 3.1% from a year earlier.
- Revisions: August and September were revised up by a combined 84,000 jobs.
"Today's jobs report is a strong rebuttal to fears that the economy is heading into a meaningful slowdown," Seema Shah, chief global strategist at Principal Asset Management, told CNBC.
Fed hike odds rise and yields climb
The strong data cuts both ways for stocks. Treasury yields rose after the release, and the 10-year yield traded near 4.87%. After the report, CME FedWatch showed traders putting the probability of a quarter-point rate hike at the Fed's December 8-9 meeting at about 77%, according to CNBC. For background on how rate expectations have shifted this year, see our earlier report on the Fed and global markets.
The University of Michigan's preliminary November consumer sentiment index came in at 51.0, above the 47.5 consensus. One-year inflation expectations eased to 4.3%.
Earnings movers
- Airbnb jumped about 11% after hours on Thursday. Earnings of $3.16 a share and revenue of $4.87 billion beat estimates of $2.85 and $4.75 billion.
- DraftKings fell about 24% after reporting a third-quarter loss of 94 cents a share, wider than the 39-cent loss expected.
- Moderna rose nearly 10% before the open after beating estimates and raising its 2026 revenue growth outlook to 15% to 25%.
- Lam Research gained nearly 11% before the open after announcing a $25 billion share buyback.
Global markets and oil
The tech rout spread overseas. CNBC reported that Japan's Nikkei 225 and Taiwan's Taiex both entered bear markets, down 20% or more from their peaks. South Korea's Kospi fell more than 8%, triggering circuit breakers. Our earlier Asian markets wrap covers the run-up to this week's moves.
Brent crude traded near $98.65 a barrel and US benchmark WTI near $91, as traders weighed the risk of renewed US military action against Iran.
What to watch next
- The weekly finish: before Friday's session, the Nasdaq was down about 3% for the week, the S&P 500 about 2% and the Dow about 1%.
- Data center policy: any concrete proposals from incoming Democratic lawmakers or the new Texas administration.
- The Fed: its December 8-9 meeting, and whether inflation data due before then confirms hike expectations.
Corrections have often been followed by recoveries within months, but past performance does not guarantee future results.
Market figures are intraday as of mid-morning ET on November 6, 2026, unless marked as closing levels. Updated November 9 with Friday's close. Data was checked against the BLS release, CNBC, CBS News and Yahoo Finance. This article is for information only and is not investment advice.